What kinds of DSHS certification and qualification testing are available?
DSHS currently certifies social service interpreters, medical interpreters, translators, and DSHS active/potential bilingual employees, mental health licensed agency personnel in Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese Chinese, Korean, Cambodian, and Laotian. The Department also qualifies social service interpreters and medical interpreters in all other languages (screening test). Will I get a certificate when I pass the screening test? Instead of a certificate, interpreters who pass the screening test will be issued an authorization letter. The authorization letter qualifies an interpreter to serve DSHS clients. Where do I get detailed information about DSHS language certification and testing? The Examination Manual (in Word format) provides detailed information on certification and testing. What is the difference between an interpreter and a translator? An interpreter is a person who orally transfers a message from one spoken language to another. A translator is a p
